Frank Robinson

I launched Island Events as a luxury event production company during the recession of 2009 and have been an integral part in leading the companies growth and development as an iconic DMC in Hawaii at every level since then. Producing legendary events and incentive programs while simultaneously leading a work culture that encourages peoples skills and passions, respects our host culture and the beauty of our island home continues to be an honor. I started the company as a boutique event management company with a focus on delivering luxury experiences. That has been the base of the company's brand as we have grown. Through this growth we have flourished and and pivoted with great agility into being a full service DMC that excels with events of all levels & size. As Island Events has grown so has my role from a sole employee to managing an incredible full time team and 45+ part time travel staff throughout Hawaii. The skill sets acquired and lessons learned along the path have culminated in this role and allow me the opportunity to fully embrace and enliven my work with passion and experience.

Prior to becoming Chapter President of this international organization that mobilizes the global meeting industry I served on the Board of Directors as VP of Communications for 2 years for this active and vibrant MPI chapter. During my tenure as President I worked with the BOD to conduct monthly board meeting, initiated and implemented virtual events that engaged each island, implemented strategy that increased membership and event attendance, increased educational value and membership ROI. I worked to produce an annual gala with a committee and assisted in several meaningful community service events throughout my time on and leading the Board and Chapter. I remain an active member of the chapter.

Working at this median service level Hilton business hotel in Waikiki I was able to maximize my ability to pivot my luxury resort experience and sales skills. In doing so I was successful in further developing the catering and conference team during a national recession to exceed our team goals while yield managing revenues and expenses to increase profit. Being based in Waikiki this position allowed me the time and proximity to meet, and interact with, many of Hawaii's top event colleagues as I worked to increase "Frank Awareness" prior to the planned launching of Island Events.

Working at Kualoa was amazing and one of the best experiences of my life. The natural beauty is truly breathtaking and only surpassed by the kindness of her people, Both were parts of a work environment I had missed and excelled in. I was tasked with building and developing an events team at this cattle ranch and activity center with stunning venue spaces for groups of 5 to 5000... the sky was literally the limits on what we could do; as long as we honored the land, respected the culture and history of the ranch. Using my sales skills I was able to tap into the DMC community and build relationships with them - leading to an increase of venue rental by 400%. This was done by tapping int the DMC and Event planning community in Hawaii, attending trade-shows, sales trip and continual cross promotion. I was successful in initiating and implementing internal polices & procedures across multiple departments that recognized the needs of the clients and increased the ease of doing business for all parties. Throughout this time I also booked and managing film crews on property. In building a collaborative process team we worked to enhance client experiences and protect the integrity of the venue for such television shows as "Lost" and feature films such as "50 First Dates". My time at Kualao Ranch took me away from the silk wallpapered halls of luxury hotels and resorts, allowing me to reconnect with nature and the joy of creating and building a team.

I joined this DMC after working at two other luxury resorts in Hawaii from 2003 - 2006 and having built a great working relationship with the principals of the IPH, I was brought in to be a catalyst for change in raising the level of events and programs being produced and as an experienced leader in building relationships and partnerships with the resort community. During my tenure I worked tirelessly to successfully enhance the image of the DMC within the resort community, building custom events and creating revenue streams for both the DMC and the resorts. I worked with the cultural and design teams to initiate inspiration for events that became signatures for the DMC and simultaneously with the sales team to create the presentations that would promote theses events and secure clients leading to additional revenues. I was able to again utilize my culinary education and resort experience to mentor across vertical teams in better cross selling the resort properties and ensuring enhanced DMC revenues. During my tenure I managed the DMC elements of full scale incentive travel programs on all of the Hawaiian islands (leading a team on both Maui and Oahu). I utilized the time to build strong profitable relationships with resort leadership while exponentially expanding my event production experience in a variety of venues through out Hawaii for our valued clients. My biggest take-away from this role was that I now knew that I thoroughly enjoyed the work of a DMC. I was also now confident that I had the skills and experience to raise the bar on how destination management was being addressed at a luxury level in the Hawaii DMC community.

Upon moving to Honolulu for personal reasons I was unable to find meaningful work on Oahu and moved to the private island of Lanai'i where I assumed the role as Director of Catering & Conference Services for this privately owned and managed set of resorts. Leading a young and novice team, many in their initial resort roles, allowed me to practice and enliven, to great extent, the leadership and mentors I had been fortunate enough to experience in my earlier years in the hospitality industry, Through coaching and teaching I worked with my team of wedding, catering and conference service managers, and across multi faceted resort departments to develop processes and procedures ensuring successful guest and group experiences at these two award winning resorts, and simultaneously at activities and attractions throughout the island. This leadership opportunity also allowed me my first experience in working in Hawaii and within the very distinct backdrop of a unique island culture. Allowing me to embrace and encourage diversity as a strength to an organization and to facilitate growth to that organization through the implementation of Total Quality Management / TQM processes. This opportunity allowed me to strengthen my people management skills and engaged me creatively to the limitless possibilities Hawaii would provide.

I joined the team at the Four Seasons Boston, at the time new England's on 5-Star / 5-Diamond hotel, as Catering Manager working within the Financial and Pharmaceutical markets. Bringing with me the skills and expertise acquired from previous roles and healthy client relationships. During my tenure at the hotel I was again able to achieve over 100% of my fiscal and growth goals and to reshape the hotel's presence as a leader in these markets. I was asked to relocate to Scottsdale by Four Seasons to assist in opening of this 5-Star resort as a Conference Service Manager and did so in January of 2020. Working with industry leaders to open this resort was a rewarding and growth filled experience. Relying on my strong negotiating, organizational and communication skills I was honored to be an integral part of the opening team that would lay the foundation for this award winning property. Using the time and previous experiences to flex my creative muscles I was able to further enhance my skills in logistics and comprehensive event management. Building strong relationships with major incentive houses such as Maritz Travel and BI and local industry partners to provide unparalleled guest experiences both on and off property. I invested significant time growing the resorts partnerships with area DMC in strategic collaboration developing unique experiences for such Fortune 100 companies as Subaru, HP, TransAmerica and countless others that allowed the resort to increase its market share within the incentive travel market exponentially.

The Ritz-Carlton Boston was the first luxury hotel i worked in and was very much an opening door for me in my career. At the time the hotel was still managed by The Ritz-Carlton company and was an iconic property both in Boston and globally. As part of our Total Quality Management /TQM approach I participated and led internal process teams that helped the company in being awarded the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award during my tenure. I was able to utilize my skills and knowledge garnered in culinary school and earlier positions to better understand and improve many processes across several different departments to ensure high level employee and guest experiences. I collaborated with with department heads to introduce and fine tune elements of service that allowed us to excel in catering to the financial market. I achieved 150% of my sales goals while developing strong relationships with event & travel professionals within the financial and pharmaceutical markets for the hotel's catering department. Through the Ritz - Carlton I was able to engage in iconic community events that has led to lasting relationships with my colleagues and clients from this iconic property.